Yesterday I smoked another cigar that I bought from Scotty’s Cigars, an Illusione ~hl~ Candela. This is a 7 ½” x 40 Lancero with a pigtail cap and a bright green candela wrapper. It’s a Nicaraguan puro made in Honduras apparently. I’ve smoked the ~hl~ in Maduro and loved it. First I’ll say that I need to smoke more Illusione cigars, I don’t frequent the local stores that have a good selection of them, enough. I love smoking them when I pick them up, and I love listening to Dion any chance I get. I need to sample more of the lines. Regarding the Candela ~hl~, or Holy Lance as it’s sometimes referred, if you aren’t a fan of candela, this may not be for you. If you are a fan of candela, and I really enjoy it from time to time as a change of pace and palate refresher, this is a great cigar. It’s got that crisp, clean, herbal kind of flavor. You can taste the chloroform chlorophyll and, like I said, it’s refreshing! This example had a great burn and draw and gave me two hours of relaxation on the porch. I wouldn’t have wanted to take this for a walk on a cold, winders night, but in the comfort of the propane heater, it was real nice. It was a damned tasty smoke.
I received a couple news stories this week from Oveja Negra, and I want to comment on the first one, involving the distribution in Belgium and Luxembourg. I usually don’t pass along news items about international distribution, but there was another piece of this that cought my eye. The company that is the distributor in that small part of Europe is called Media Rueda and Halfwheel’s holding company is called Rueda Media (Halfwheel reported on the story and commented on this, saying they had no prior knowledge of the European company until this story). I’m guessing Halfwheel has had the name since it’s inception in 2012 or ‘13 or whenever it was they started, so my question is: will there be a letter sent from the attorneys on this? Is a cigar distributor in tiny Belgium/Luxembourg worth the legal fees, or is it a matter of ego? Am I right in assuming that my readers neither care about international distribution, nor the name of Halfwheel’s holding company or are likely to confuse it with a European distributor? Disregard all of this and check out these two news items from the folks at Oveja Negra, the second of which is probably far more interesting!
Oveja Negra Brands is pleased to announce their distribution agreement with Media Rueda™ for Belgium and Luxembourg.
Starting today Black Label Trading Company and Black Works Studio cigars will be available in the Belgium and Luxembourg markets through Media Rueda™.
“After entering the German market a couple of years ago, we have been humbled by the incredible reception our cigars have received. We are excited to continue our expansion in Europe by adding Media Rueda™ to the Oveja Negra family. Pieter and his partners have been amazing supporters of what we do and I’m looking forward to working with him in the Belgium market,” said James Brown, creator of BLTC and BLK WKS, and partner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.
“We are excited to bring Oveja Negra Brands to our markets. There is great demand for excellent, hand crafted cigars and we feel honored Oveja Negra Brands put their trust in us to serve our local customers,” added Pieter De Windt, partner at Media Rueda™.
Black Label Trading Company and Black Works Studio create handcrafted premium cigars of the utmost quality in small batch, limited quantities at Fabrica Oveja Negra.
Media Rueda™ bv has the express goal to import and distribute added value, hand-made premium cigars in Europe. For more information, please visit mediarueda.eu
I look forward to trying this Cameroon wrapped cigar! Corona Gorda and Lonsdale are neat sizes too.
Black Works Studio (BLK WKS) is pleased to announce the release of Hyena: Hand crafted in Esteli, Nicaragua at Fabrica Oveja Negra.
HYENA is a Limited Edition that will be shipping to select BLK WKS retailers at the beginning of March.
“Hyena is the latest addition to the BLK WKS portfolio. A truly unique cigar that is focused on showcasing a perfect balance between Nicaraguan fillers and the Cameroon wrapper. The profile is spice forward with white pepper & semi-sweet baking spices blended with herbal notes & cedar. The finish is a blend of bitter cocoa, cream & malt. Hyena is an extremely complex and balanced cigar and is a tribute to my wife’s and my many years of living in Africa,” said James Brown, creator of BLTC & BLK WKS and owner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.
HYENA
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Cameroon
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Nicaragua
Corona Gorda – 5 x 46 (20 count) MSRP $12.00
Lonsdale – 6.5×42 (20 count) MSRP $12.50
These cigars are an expression of art showcasing the talent, technique and tobacco of our boutique cigar factory; Fabrica Oveja Negra. BLK WKS cigars are available for purchase through Oveja Negra Brands. For more information visit OvejaNegraCigars.com.
That’s all for today, until the next time,
CigarCraig
